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Accredited TEFL courses? HELP!

Hi, I'm looking to do a TEFL and there are just too many to get my head around, I have been thinking of going with TEFL England, as they say they are accredited and recognised around the world, however they're not accredited with Trinity, or Cambridge, so I don't know whether to believe their claims. They are recognised by SQA, is that good? Please Help!

Re: Accredited TEFL courses? HELP!

Originally Posted by Aneesa Hot-Point

Hi, I'm looking to do a TEFL and there are just too many to get my head around, I have been thinking of going with TEFL England, as they say they are accredited and recognised around the world, however they're not accredited with Trinity, or Cambridge, so I don't know whether to believe their claims. They are recognised by SQA, is that good? Please Help!

Hi there!

I did a weekend course with TEFL England in July, it was really good fun and i learnt a lot. I'm going to do an online course now, too. They are the most highly accredited in the UK, i checked. If you look on the website there's a bit with their accreditation's listed, and the girl i spoke to when i called them said the same. The SQA is the Scottish Qualifications Authority (i'm from Scotland) and that's a good sign - they're in charge of all of our school examinations up here. Maybe call them and ask them about what you're unsure of? I'd recommend them (they have TEFL Scotland, TEFL England, TEFL Courses Ireland and TEFL Wales), but obviously it's up to you! Good luck :)

Re: Accredited TEFL courses? HELP!

There are many course-providers, and many accrediting bodies in the world, and some of them are quite good. However, the fact remains that the CELTA and the Trinity CertTESOL are the only two certificates that are almost universally recognised. They are certainly the only two ever mentioned by name in job advertisements.

Re: Accredited TEFL courses? HELP!

On purely pragmatic grounds, I would suggest the CELTA- it's recognised everywhere and is the number 1 qualification in job adverts. Trinity comes a healthy second and just about no one else ever gets named.

Re: Accredited TEFL courses? HELP!

I worked as a trainer (long ago) on an RSA course, and have trained on CELTA, Trinity and 'other' courses. I know that some of the 'other' courses I have worked on have produced teachers as good as those from any CELTA or Trinity course, but job applicants with one of the two 'recognised' certificates are in a much stronger position. This may not be fair, but it's true.

ps. To reputable employers, any certificate not gained after an absolute minimum of 100 hours of work and six hours of observed teaching practice is not worth the paper it's printed on.

Re: Accredited TEFL courses? HELP!

Originally Posted by Aneesa Hot-Point

Hi, I'm looking to do a TEFL and there are just too many to get my head around, I have been thinking of going with TEFL England, as they say they are accredited and recognised around the world, however they're not accredited with Trinity, or Cambridge, so I don't know whether to believe their claims. They are recognised by SQA, is that good? Please Help!

Hello, I am from Italy and some time ago I decided to take a TEFL course to improve my career perspectives (I have a degree in English). I took an online course at teflexpress.co.uk but there are many other providers you can look for on the internet, just make sure they offer you good support on internships and job opportunities.
I liked the course and it was easy to pass it, as I did it from home. I got my certificate and everything, however they only send it to you by email. If you want a paper certificate you need to add an extra fee. It was pretty ok on the whole and they often give you discounts for friends etc for instance I was given a 500-euro discount code for a tefl course, if you're interested just send me a message. Hope this helps and good luck with your teaching career :)

for other providers just google "TEFL courses" and you'll get plenty of them

Re: Accredited TEFL courses? HELP!

Originally Posted by SerP

I liked the course and it was easy to pass it, as I did it from home.

I don't know the course you mention, but I would not recommend it to anyone sight unseen. Neither CELTA nor Trinity is 'easy to pass'. One of the reasons for their international recognition is that employers know that certain standards are insisted on. I would be suspicious of a course that was easy to pass.

If you got it from home, then I assume that no teaching practice was involved. As I said in a previous post, "To reputable employers, any certificate not gained after an absolute minimum of 100 hours of work and six hours of observed teaching practice is not worth the paper it's printed on".